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PLANNING 

PROJECTS 

for 

ELKHART 

INDIANA 

By  JOHN  NOLEN,  City  Planner 
PHILIP  W.  FOSTER,  Associate 


With  a  Supplement  on 

ZONING 


Beg  Your  Pardon! 

The  name  A.  H.  Beardsley  in  the  Elkhart  City  Plan  Commission  (on 
title  page)  should  be  A.  H.  Burrell. 

CORRECTIONS  ON  MAPS 

Despite  the  fact  that  three  days  were  spent  in  careful  correction  of 
engraver’s  first  proofs  of  the  seventeen  plates  for  the  colored  maps, 
errors  were  inadvertently  overlooked.  Please  note  the  following: 

On  General  City  Plan  map  (inside  front  cover) — 

Purple  south  of  Fourth  Ward  School  at  Oakland  avenue  and  Mason 
street  should  be  red  with  dotted  line  (proposed  schoolground) . 

Purple  east  of  old  Fifth  Ward  School  at  Prairie  street  and  Park 
avenue  should  be  red  with  dotted  line  (proposed  schoolground). 

Riverside  Drive  from  Bower  street  to  Edwardsburg  avenue  should 
be  yellow. 

Richmond  street,  showing  partly  blue,  should  be  green  (center 
parking). 

Small  red  spot  on  West  Franklin  street  opposite  Thomas  street 
should  be  purple. 

On  Diagram  of  New  Developments  map  (inside  back  cover) — 
Small  purple  rectangular  plot  at  westerly  side  of  Elkhart  river,  south 
of  N.  Y.  C.  “Old  Road”  and  just  east  of  center  of  map  should  be 
black-checkered  like  other  industrial  properties. 

Red  triangular  plot  between  Middlebury  street,  Goshen  avenue  and 
city  boundary  should  be  yellow  (proposed  schoolground). 

On  Zone  Plan  map  (page  20) — 

Northeast  side  of  Sterling  avenue  from  Indiana  avenue  to  Lusher 
avenue  should  be  red  (proposed  business  zone). 


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CHAMBER,  OF  COMMERCE! 


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Official  Personnel 

of  the 

City  of  Elkhart,  Indiana 

1923 

City  Officers 

Mayor  . Hon.  B.  Frank  Leader 

Controller  . Mr.  Wm.  P.  Krau 

City  Clerk  . ..v. Mr.  V.  C.  Meisner 

City  Treasurer  . . . . .  Mr.  Fred  Lundquist 

City  Attorney  . . . . .  Orrin  M.  Conley,  Esq. 

City  Judge  . . . . . .  Walter  G.  Walker,  Esq. 

City  Engineer  . .  Mr.  H.  J.  Weaver 

City  Electrician  . , . . .  Mr.  Vernon  V.  Mann 

Street  Commissioner  .  Mr.  James  Leicester 

Park  Superintendent  .  Mr.  Henry  D.  Seele 

City  Sealer  and  Health  Inspector  .  Mr.  Ead  C.  Meyers 

Chief  of  Fire  Department  .  Mr.  Walter  Tavernier 

Chief  of  Police  . . .  Mr.  Loren  H.  Northrup 

City  Council 

Councilman-at-Large  . . .  Mr.  John  H.  Wineland 

Councilman-at-Large  . . .  Mr.  A.  B.  Winey 

Councilman-at-Large  .  Mr.  R.  D.  Compton 

First  Ward  . . . . ■. .  Mr.  Ira  E.  Elliott 

Second  Ward  . . . . . Mr.  A.  H.  Burrell 

Third  Ward  . : . .  Mr.  J.  G.  Keil 

Fourth  Ward  . . . . .  . .  Mr.  John  H.  Vehlber 

Fifth  Ward  . . . . .  Mr.  Robert  Cook 

Sixth  Ward  .  . .  Mr.  Charles  S.  Miller 

Board  of  Public  Works 

Mr.  A.  G.  Winey,  President 

—  Mr.  Otto  H.  Helfrick  Mr.  W.  H.  Riblet 

Board  of  Health 

Dr.  A.  A.  Norris,  President 

Dr.  G.  B.  Hoopingarner,  Secretary  Mr.  Ira  R.  Van  Gorder 


Board  of  Police  Commissioners 

Mr.  George  L.  Minnix,  President 

Mr.  Charles  A.  Larson  Mr.  George  A.  Shaffer 


PLANNING  PROJECTS  for  ELKHART,  INDIANA 

Report  on  Planning  Proposals  Based  on  Planning  Survey 

By  JOHN  NOLEN,  A.  M.,  Sc.D.,  City  Planner  :  PHILIP  W.  FOSTER,  Associate 

Harvard  Square,  Cambridge,  Massachusetts 

Prepared  for  and  Presented  to  The  City  of  Elkhart  by  the  Elkhart  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  Subscribers  to  a  City  Plan  Fund 

WITH  a  SUPPLEMENT  on  ZONING 


The  CHAMBER  of  COMMERCE 
COMMITTEE  on  CITY  PLAN 

Appointed  by  President  C.  D.  Greenleaf, 

May  20,  1920. 

E.  HILL  TURNOCK,  Chairman 

A.  H.  BEARDSLEY 

H.  F.  BORNEMAN 

JOHN  C.  BOSS 

M.  U.  DEMAREST 

EDNA  E.  GRIMES 

H.  I.  ISBELL 

W.  N.  SHAW 

H.  J.  WEAVER 

W.  E.  WIDER 

E.  B.  ZIGLER  (Deceased) 


EX-OFFICIO  MEMBERS  of 
The  COMMITTEE 

C.  D.  GREENLEAF 

President,  1920-21 

DR.  J.  C.  FLEMING 

President,  1922 
J.  L.  HARMAN 

President,  1923 

W.  L.  SHAFER 

Secretary,  1920-23 


The  CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 
of  ELKHART,  INDIANA 

Authorized  by  City  Ordinance,  December  22, 
1921 — Appointed  by  Mayor  W.  E.  Wider 
and  City  Council,  December  30,  1921 

E.  HILL  TURNOCK,  President 
A.  G.  WINEY,  Vice-President 
TOM  H.  KEENE,  Secretary 
H.  F.  BORNEMAN 
A.  H.  BEARDSLEY 
HERBERT  FINCH 
C.  E.  JACKSON 
H.  J.  WEAVER 


HON.  ELIHU  ROOT  ON  THE  VALUE  OF  CITY  PLANNING:  “I  think  that  the  existence  of  plans  known  to 

everybody  will  give  just  enough  direction  to  the  movement  of  the  multitude  of  separate  impulses  to  lead  the 

growth  of  the  city  along  the  right  lines.” 


fC*/ 

I  AM  YOUR  TOWN.  Make  of  me  what  you  will — I  shall  reflect  you  as  clearly  as  a  mirror  throws  back  a  candle  beam, 
tj  If  I  am  pleasing  to  the  eye  of  the  stranger  within  my  gates;  if  I  am  such  a  sight  as,  having  seen  me,  he  will  remember 
me  all  his  days  as  a  thing  of  beauty,  the  credit  is  yours.  <J  Ambition  and  opportunity  call  some  of  my  sons  and  daughters 
to  high  tasks  and  mighty  privileges,  to  my  greater  honor  and  to  my  good  repute  in  far  places,  but  it  is  not  chiefly  these 
who  are  my  strength.  My  strength  is  in  those  who  remain,  who  are  content  with  what  I  can  offer  them,  and  with  what 
they  can  offer  me.  It  was  the  greatest  of  all  Romans  who  said:  “Better  be  first  in  a  little  Iberian  village  than  second  in 
Rome.’’  C|  I  am  more  than  wood  and  brick  and  stone,  more  even  than  flesh  and  blood — I  am  the  composite  soul  of  all 

who  call  me  Home.  CJ  I  am  your  town. — American  Legion  Weekly. 


7? HftO 
PO 


FOUNTAIN  MONUMENT  REVERING  DR  HAVILAH  BEARDSLEY.  FOUNDER  OF  ElKHART 


PLANNING  PROJECTS  for  ELKHART,  INDIANA 

By  John  Nolen,  A.  M.,  Sc.  D.,  City  Planner  —  Philip  W.  Foster,  Associate 


The  following  report  on  the  Planning  Projects  for  Elkhart, 
Indiana,  sums  up  the  recommendations  that  have  been  made 
for  the  improvement  of  the  present  conditions  in  the  city  and 
outlines  the  way  in  which  new  growth  and  development  should 
be  guided  and  controlled.  Such  a  program  carefully  carried 
into  execution  will  insure  for  the  future  an  orderly,  convenient 
and  beautiful  city;  a  place  in  which  to  live  and  work  under 
the  best  conditions  and  a  place  in  which  opportunity  is 
afforded  for  recreation  and  pleasure,  thus  making  the  living 
and  the  working  worth  while. 

The  general  plans  which  accompany  this  report  are  the 
final  outcome  of  the  previous  studies,  based  on  the  planning 
survey,  copies  of  which  have  already  been  submitted.  The 
following  reports  have  been  presented  during  the  progress  of 
the  work  for  the  approval  and  use  of  the  City  Plan  Committee. 

Planning  Survey 

Prepared  as  the  Basis  for  Planning  Studies. 

Preliminary  Report 

On  Planning  Studies. 

Supplementary  Report 

On  Zoning  to  accompany  Planning  Studies. 

Letter  Reports  with  Center  Plan 
On  Location  for  Proposed  Hotel. 

Letter  Report  with  Sketch 

On  Main  Street  Grade  Elimination. 


THE  GENERAL  PLAN 

To  bring  together  the  planning  proposals  and  recommen¬ 
dations  that  are  submitted  the  General  Plan  has  been  pre¬ 
pared,  consolidating  the  different  elements  that  enter  into  the 
make-up  of  the  city  and  showing  their  interrelationship  and 


harmony.  This  plan  has  been  drawn  at  the  scale  of  400  feet 
to  the  inch  and  shows  clearly,  although  in  a  diagrammatic 
way,  the  proposed  changes  and  new  planning.  These  changes 
and  additions  taken  together  with  existing  conditions  have 
been  organized  so  as  to  form  a  system  of  main  thoroughfares, 
parks  and  parkways,  schools  and  playgrounds,  covering  and 
serving  the  entire  city.  The  plan  also  brings  out  forcefully 
the  importance  in  the  whole  plan  of  such  features  as  the 
Main  Street  railroad  grade  elimination,  the  development  of 
the  Civic  Center,  the  importance  of  the  Parks  along  the  river 
bank,  and  other  city  planning  proposals. 

The  legend  on  the  plan  shows  the  car  lines,  railroads, 
parks  and  playgrounds  (existing  and  proposed),  school 
grounds  (existing  and  proposed),  public  and  semi-public  pro¬ 
perty,  industrial  property  and  cemeteries. 


MAIN  THOROUGHFARES 

We  recommend  the  establishment  of  a  system  of  main 
thoroughfares  as  shown  on  the  accompanying  General  Plan, 
and  the  Diagram  of  Main  Thoroughfares;  existing  streets 
selected  to  constitute  the  framework  of  this  system  being  as 
follows : 

Bristol  Street. 

Mishawaka  Avenue. 

Beardsley  Avenue. 

Bower — Sherman  Streets. 

Lexington  Avenue — Vistula — Jackson  Streets. 

Franklin — Harrison — Division  Streets. 

Middlebury  Street. 

Indiana  Avenue. 

Lusher  Avenue. 


Hiveley  Avenue. 

Twenty-first — Nappanee  Streets. 

Oakland  Avenue — Michigan  Street. 

Sixth  Street. 

Benham  Avenue — Third  Street — Edwardsburg  Avenue. 

Prairie  Street. 

Main  Street. 

Goshen  Avenue. 

The  Existing  Conditions  Map  of  the  Planning  Survey 
should  be  compared  with  the  General  Plan  as  a  ready  means 
of  noting  the  recommendations  as  a  whole.  The  changes  and 
extensions  proposed  in  the  main  thoroughfare  system  are 
indicated  still  more  clearly  on  the  Diagram  of  Main  Thorough¬ 
fares  by  a  difference  in  the  color  in  the  rendering. 

The  principles  of  selection  followed  in  making  the  recom¬ 
mendations  for  changes  and  additions  to  the  main  thorough¬ 
fares  are,  first  of  all,  the  recognition  of  the  actual  existing 
street  and  other  conditions  in  Elkhart  and  the  opportunities 
which  those  conditions  afford  to  secure  the  best  results  at  the 
least  cost,  taking  into  account  a  reasonable  standard  of  re¬ 
quirements  for  traffic  in  a  city  the  size  of  Elkhart  with  its 
prospects  for  growth.  Secondly,  a  consideration  of  the  dis¬ 
tances  of  one  main  thoroughfare  from  another  approximately 
parallel  thoroughfare  with  a  view  of  obtaining  a  main  thor¬ 
oughfare  at  about  every  half  mile  interval.  And  thirdly,  the 
necessity  and  advantage  of  recognizing  and  properly  providing 
for  connections  to  and  from  the  city  with  surrounding  places 
of  importance  in  every  direction — for  example,  St.  Joseph, 
Benton  Harbor,  Detroit,  Middlebury,  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana¬ 
polis,  South  Bend  and  Chicago. 

Special  attention  should  be  given  in  the  examination  of 
the  plan  to  the  piecing  out  of  the  thoroughfare  system  by 
providing  for  the  “missing  links.”  Sometimes  these  are  very 
short  distances,  but  great  gain  would  result  from  these  con¬ 
nections.  This  is  especially  true  in  those  parts  of  the  thor¬ 
oughfare  system  which  follow  in  a  general  way  the  short 
lines  of  the  rivers  or  provide  new  outlets  across  undeveloped 
areas.  Attention  should  also  be  given  to  the  proposals  for 
taking  care  more  conveniently  and  agreeably  of  a  number  of 
important  street  intersections. 

No  radical  changes  are  proposed  in  the  main  street  system 
in  the  built-up  sections  of  the  city,  for  two  reasons:  First, 
because  the  existing  system  is  of  such  a  character  as  not  to 
demand  such  changes;  and  secondly,  the  attempt  to  cut 
through  artificial  diagonal  streets  across  an  already  developed 
rectangular  system  would  not  in  our  judgment  in  the  case  of 
Elkhart  be  justified.  A  few  diagonal  connections  in  outlying 
sections,  both  east  and  west,  are  provided  and  recommended, 
especially  those  parallel  to  the  New  York  Central  Railroad 
Lines,  Old  Road  Division  to  Toledo. 

We  are  inclined  to  be  conservative  in  urging  street  widen- 
ings  in  built-up  areas  in  cities  the  size  of  Elkhart.  Yet  it 
must  be  recognized  that  the  demands  on  all  the  main  streets 
will  increase  with  the  growth  of  the  city,  and  therefore,  wher¬ 
ever  practicable,  steps  should  be  taken  toward  a  gradual 
general  widening  of  the  main  thoroughfares. 

Closely  related  to  the  subject  of  main  thoroughfares  is 
the  laying  out  of  all  streets  and  the  formulation  and  adoption 
of  principles  relating  to  the  platting  of  land,  the  layout  of 
streets  and  the  dedication  of  public  property.  Such  control 
is  essential  to  the  proper  and  right  growth  of  the  city.  This 


control  of  plats  should  cover  not  only  the  location  of  streets 
and  the  size  of  blocks,  but  also  in  many  instances  the  park 
and  other  recreation  areas,  public  building  sites  and  district¬ 
ing.  Some  local  examples  of  the  bad  results  of  uncontrolled 
platting  are  the  following:  West  of  Best  Avenue  and  south 
of  Indiana  Avenue  (blocks  too  small  and  unnecessary  alleys)  ; 
west  of  Twenty-first  Street  and  south  of  Lusher  Avenue  (local 
streets  unnecessarily  jogged);  east  of  Eddy  Street  north  of 
Hiveley  Avenue  (superfluous  alleys)  ;  Garden  Street  south  of 
Middlebury  Street  (an  unrelated  single  street  with  fragmen¬ 
tary  alleys) ;  north  of  Baldwin  Street  between  Cassopolis 
Street  and  Johnson  Street  (small,  monotonous  block  with 
double  alley  system) ;  east  of  Sterling  Avenue  between 
Indiana  Avenue  and  Lusher  Avenue  (blocks  excessively  long). 

A  Guide  on  the  Acceptance  of  New  Plats  prepared  in 
this  office  for  the  use  of  City  Plan  Commissions  is  submitted 
in  the  Appendix  as  a  supplement  to  this  report. 

In  our  study  of  the  problem  of  the  main  thoroughfare 
system  for  Elkhart  and  in  our  recommendations  we  have  been 
guided  by  the  facts  revealed  by  the  Planning  Survey,  and 
invite  your  attention  to  those  facts  and  to  the  maps  submitted 
on  Existing  Conditions,  Land  Values,  Distribution  of  Popula¬ 
tion  and  Occupation  of  Land.  Many  of  the  facts  revealed 
by  our  studies,  and  made  graphic  by  the  Planning  Survey 
maps,  have  influenced  our  action  in  the  selection  of  existing 
streets  for  classification  and  development  as  parts  of  the  main 
thoroughfare  system. 


PARKS  AND  PARKWAYS 


The  present  parks  and  playgrounds  of  Elkhart  are  shown 
on  the  Existing  Conditions  sheet  of  the  Planning  Survey. 
While  Elkhart  has  made  a  beginning  in  the  acquisition  of 
park  lands,  the  extent  of  these  lands  is  inadequate,  and 
comparatively  little  has  been  done  on  most  of  the  areas  to¬ 
ward  real  development  and  full  utilization. 


The  following  are  the  present  public  park  areas 

in  Elkhart: 

Name 

Location 

Acreage 

Development 

Island 

Between  St.  Joseph  and  Elk 
hart  Rivers 

7 

Developed. 

McNaughton 

North  Bank  of  St.  Joseph  River 
at  West  City  Limits 

40 

Developed. 

Rice 

Goshen  Ave.  and  Elkhart  River 

30 

Undeveloped. 

Studebaker 

South  Bank  of  Elkhart  River  at 
East  City  Limits 

20 

Developed. 

Willowdale 

Christiana  Creek  at  North  City 
Limits 

3 

Undeveloped. 

Johnson 

Cedar  and  Prospect  Streets  and 
Riverside  Drive 

14 

Developed. 

Riverside 

West  Riverside  Drive 

25 

Developed. 

Beardsley 

Monument 

Beardsley  Avenue  and  River¬ 
side  Drive 

TTJ 

Developed. 

Floral 

Massachusetts  Avenue  and  Su- 
wanee  Street 

1 

Undeveloped. 

The  principal  proposed  parks  and  parkways  which  are 
recommended  in  connection  with  the  city  plan  follow.  They 
can  be  better  considered  by  referring  to  the  General  Plan. 
The  names  used  are  not  necessarily  intended  as  final,  but 
have  been  adopted  for  convenience  of  reference. 


Northwestern  Park 
Bristol  Triangle 
Christiana  Parkway 
North  Park  Playfield 
Conn  Park 


Bower  Park 
Hoosier  Greens 
Indiana  Field 
Prairie  Park 
Grove  Park 


4 


5 


VISUALIZING  SOME  OF  DOCTOR  NOLEN’S  PROPOSED  STREET  EXTENSIONS 

Compare  with  “Main  Thoroughfares  map:  1 — High  street  along  Elkhart  river  from  Jackson  boulevard.  2 — Bridge  over  Elkhart  river  would  connect 
downtown  Elkhart  direct,  via  Division  street,  with  this  willow-bordered  drive  (Division  street)  through  Rice  Park  to  Goshen  avenue  and  Rice 
Cemetery.  3 — View  from  South  Main  street  of  proposed  Charles  street  extension  to  South  Main,  with  “subway"  under  New  York  Central  tracks  at 
Charles  and  Madison  streets  and  emerging  between  St.  Vincent’s  Church  and  No.  2  Fire  Station  into  South  Main  and  Prairie  streets.  4 — Proposed 
extension  of  East  street  from  State  to  Middlebury.  5 — Proposed  Benham  avenue  extension  northeasterly  to  South  Third.  6 — South  Third  street  at 
Harrison— -proposed  "subway  under  New  York  Central,  connecting  with  South  Third  south  of  railroad. 

6 


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Puterbaugh  Parkway  Benham  Field 

St.  Joseph’s  Riverway  Central  Square 

East  Park  Aviation  Field  Southeastern  Park 

Portage  Hiveley  Playground 

Studebaker  Park  Extension  Elkhart  Riverway 

West  Riverway  Glen  Parkway 

Michigan  Mall 

To  this  list  there  should  be  added  a  larger  area  (probably 
500  acres  or  more)  in  the  territory  more  distant  from  the 
city,  preferably  surrounding  some  natural  feature — for  exam¬ 
ple,  a  lake. 

The  three  chief  principles  which  have  been  followed  in 
making  the  selection  of  park  and  parkway  areas  are,  first,  to 
do  what  still  may  be  done  without  insuperable  difficulty  to 
secure  for  the  public  as  much  as  possible  of  the  shores  of  the 
Elkhart  River  and  the  St.  Joseph  River,  these  streams  being 
the  most  characteristic  and  attractive  topographical  features 
of  Elkhart.  The  second  is  to  add  to  these  river  areas  blocks 
of  land  of  considerable  size  (the  largest  ninety  acres  in  area), 
distributed  in  different  sections  of  the  city,  especially  in  those 
sections  from  which  the  river  banks  are  not  so  readily  acces¬ 
sible.  The  final  principle  of  selection  is  to  recognize  at  this 
time  the  opportunity  and  necessity  to  adopt  a  more  liberal 
policy  of  land  acquisition  for  parks  that  will  provide  eventu¬ 
ally  sufficient  land  not  only  for  Elkhart’s  immediate  needs, 
but  for  the  future  city,  with  its  undoubted  larger  requirements 
in  the  way  of  public  property  for  recreation  purposes. 

An  examination  of  the  Planning  Survey  sheets  will  disclose 
the  fact,  we  believe,  that  the  park  areas  recommended  for 
acquisition  are  of  such  a  character,  of  such  price  and  in  such 
locations  that  their  purchase  would  not  involve  any  serious 
difficulties.  On  the  other  hand,  we  believe  it  will  be  evident 
that  the  proposed  park  system  would  serve  the  needs  of  each 
section  of  the  city  and  the  general  requirements  of  the  city 
as  a  whole. 

No  argument  is  presented  here  for  public  recreation  nor 
its  justification  as  we  feel  that  it  is  already  sufficiently  recog¬ 
nized  in  Elkhart. 

It  seems  wise  to  add  to  this  section  of  the  report  a  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  fact  that  a  park  system  cannot  be  made  for  a  city 
by  merely  acquiring  land.  Parks  mean  public  service  for  the 
people.  Therefore  it  is  essential  that  such  park  land  should 
be  carefully  designed  and  developed  to  serve  the  purposes 
for  which  its  selection  has  been  made. 

The  Existing  Conditions  Map  shows  that  only  a  few  of  the 
school  properties  of  Elkhart  include  an  entire  block  of  land — 
Weston,  Roosevelt  and  two  newly  selected  sites,  one  at  Wood 
and  Crescent  Streets  and  the  other  at  Erwin  and  Dearborn 
Streets.  Even  in  the  case  of  these  schools,  however,  the 
blocks  are  smaller  than  in  most  cities.  The  grounds  of  the 
other  schools  are  decidedly  small,  in  some  cases  occupying 
only  one-quarter  of  a  block  or  even  less. 

We  recommend  additions  to  the  school  grounds  as  shown 
on  the  general  city  plan  and  as  here  listed. 

Central  School,  Second  and  High  Streets. 

East  Elkhart  School,  Gladstone  Avenue  and  North  Street. 

Fifth  Ward  School,  Near  Prairie  Street  and  Park  Avenue. 


EXAMPLES  OF  PERMANENT  PARK  IMPROVEMENT 

(Pictures  at  right,  reading  down)  :  A  sunken  garden  at  Peoria,  Ill.  (easily 
possible  in  Rice  Park) — Entrance  to  Snyder  Park,  Springfield,  Ohio — View 
in  Snyder  Park — A  St.  Louis  park  vista — A  kiddies  play  pool — Island  Park, 
Racine,  Wis.  (a  suggestion  for  a  driveway  around  Elkhart’s  Island  Park.) 


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Fourth  Ward  School,  Harrison  Street  and  Oakland  Ave. 

High  School,  Second  and  High  Streets. 

Middlebury  School,  Middlebury  Street,  East  of  Main  St. 

Samuel  Strong  School,  Vistula  Street  and  Lexington  Ave. 

South  Side  School,  Cleveland  Avenue  and  Sixth  Street. 

Willowdale  School,  Michigan  and  Simonton  Streets. 

Rural  School,  Nappanee  Street,  near  Franklin  Street. 

Rural  School,  West  of  Main  St.  and  north  of  Hiveley  Ave. 

Rural  School,  East  of  Main  St.  and  south  of  Hiveley  Ave. 

One  final  point  in  connection  with  school  grounds  should 
be  emphasized,  and  that  is  the  possibility  of  economy  and 
better  results  to  be  had  by  selecting  and  acquiring  school 
properties  in  advance  of  the  spread  of  population.  In  accor¬ 
dance  with  this  view  we  have  recommended  that  the  following 
school  sites  as  shown  on  the  plan  (or  locations  near-by)  be 
purchased. 

Bristol  and  Cassopohs  Streets. 

Bower  Street  and  West  Boulevard. 

Alabama  Street  and  Linden  Avenue. 

Leininger  Avenue  and  Seventeenth  Street. 

Lusher  Avenue  and  Tenth  Street. 

Hiveley  Avenue  and  Sixth  Street. 

Lusher  Avenue  and  Prairie  Street. 

Folsom  and  Huron  Streets. 

Middlebury  Street  and  Goshen  Avenue. 


MAIN  STREET  GRADE  ELIMINATION 

In  many  respects  for  both  the  railroads  and  the  city  the 
locations  of  the  railroads  in  Elkhart  are  under  present  condi¬ 
tions  unfortunate.  The  situation  in  connection  with  the  Main 
Street  crossing  is  intolerable. 

The  main  right-of-way  of  the  New  York  Central  Lines 
comes  into  the  city  from  the  southeast,  cuts  through  a  settled 
district  to  a  point  close  to  the  heart  of  the  city,  turns  sharply 
and  at  an  awkward  angle  right  across  Main  Street,  and  then 
follows  a  general  line  to  the  southwest  out  of  the  city.  An¬ 
other  line  cf  the  New  York  Central  (the  Old  Road  Division 
to  Toledo)  comes  into  the  city  from  the  northeast  and  con¬ 
nects  with  the  main  line  of  the  railroad  at  Mam  Street.  Main 


Street  itself  at  its  intersection  with  the  railroads,  instead  of 
going  straight  ahead,  turns  at  this  point  to  the  southeast,  and 
Middlebury  Street  joins  Mam  Street,  also  crossing  the  railroad 
at  an  awkward  angle.  Both  Main  Street  and  Middlebury 
Street  have  important  double  track  car  lines. 

From  this  very  brief  description  and  from  even  a  cursory 
examination  of  the  Existing  Conditions  Map,  recalling  at  the 
same  time  that  all  streets  and  railroads  are  on  the  same 
grade,  the  great  difficulty  and  urgency  of  the  problem  can  be 
appreciated. 

While  the  acute  feature  of  the  railroad  situation  is  at  the 
Main  Street  crossing,  other  difficulties  in  the  city  plan  arise 
from  the  fact  that  the  New  York  Central  Railroad  in  connec¬ 
ter;,'?  Street  Grade  Elimination 


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“NECK  OF  THE  BOTTLE’’— SHOWING  NEED  OF  ELIMINATING  MAIN  STREET  GRADE  CROSSING 

Four  pictures  visualize  the  actual,  continuous  vehicular  and  pedestrian  traffic  and  its  interruption  by  freight  and  passenger  trains  at  an  average 
business  hour  (even  much  heavier  at  noon  and  evening  closing  hours).  A  count,  made  about  four  years  ago,  showed  more  than  25,000  persons 
crossing  at  Main  street  in  one  day.  Center  picture  shows  Middlebury  street  and  the  N.  Y.  C.  Mam  Line  and  Old  Road  tracks  leading  off  at  acute 
angles,  adding  complications  to  the  Mam  street  grade  crossing  elimination. 


ticn  with  this  right-of-way  through  the  city  occupies  large 
centrally  located  areas  with  railroad  yards  and  shops  (said 
to  be  the  fifth  largest  in  the  United  States).  In  some  places 
these  yards  are  from  1 ,500  to  2,000  feet  in  width.  From 
the  point  of  view  of  physical  planning  it  is  difficult  to  con¬ 
ceive  of  a  more  serious  handicap  to  a  growing  city  in  pro¬ 
viding  convenient,  safe  and  adequate  street  circulation. 

The  immediate  and  mcst  pressing  problem  is  the  question 
of  the  Main  Street  grade  crossing.  It  is  locally  stated  and 
firmly  believed  that  no  radical  relocation  of  the  railroad  right- 
of-way  is  feasible  at  the  present  time.  Furthermore,  no  slight 
change  of  the  general  right-of-way  would  appear  to  be  of 
much  advantage.  On  the  other  hand,  it  would  seem  that  a 
redesign  and  rearrangement  of  the  principal  streets  in  the 
neigborhood  of  the  Main  Street  crossing,  together  with  the 
elevation  cf  the  tracks  of  the  railroad  (which  is  assumed  to 


be  essential  under  any  circumstances)  would  afford  a  satis¬ 
factory  solution  of  the  chief  problems.  The  awkwardness  of 
the  situation  is  due  largely  to  the  fact  that  the  streets,  the 
traction  lines  and  the  railroads  all  center  at  the  same  place. 
The  railroads  can  be  elevated,  but  change  in  their  location 
would  be  difficult.  On  the  other  hand,  a  change  in  the 
layout  of  streets  and  blocks  immediately  south  of  the  railroad 
could  be  carried  out  with  real  advantages  and  without  exces¬ 
sive  cost. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  general  character  of  this  solution 
of  the  problem,  a  sketch  has  been  made  and  is  submitted 
showing  the  direct  extension  of  Main  Street  to  St.  Joseph 
Street,  a  relocation  of  a  section  of  Middlebury  Street,  the 
abandonment  of  portions  of  some  streets,  the  reblocking  of 
the  area  affected,  and  other  minor  changes  as  indicated  on 
the  plan. 


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P/an  for  Civic  Center  and  Centra/  Open  Space 


JOHN  NOLEN  CITY  PLANNER. 

PHILIP  W- FOSTER.  ASSOCIATE 
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PLAN  FOR  CIVIC  CENTER  AND  CENTRAL  OPEN  SPACE 

Elkhart  is  peculiarly  lacking  in  open  spaces  in  the  heart 
of  the  city.  It  has,  it  is  true,  a  better  grouping  of  public 
buildings  (at  Second  and  High  Streets)  than  most  cities  have, 
but  each  of  these  buildings  covers  a  large  part  of  the  lot 
which  it  occupies.  There  is  no  sense  of  spaciousness  around 
the  buildings — no  setting  nor  adequate  foreground.  They 
simply  stand  upon  four  corners  of  a  narrow  street  intersection. 
The  result  is  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  center  of  Elkhart  in 
the  nature  of  an  open,  unbuilt-on,  permanent  open  space — no 
common  or  central  park. 

The  need  of  at  least  one  open  block  in  the  central  section 
of  cities  is,  or  ought  to  be,  obvious.  Under  any  proper  con¬ 
ception  of  civic  life,  it  is  really  as  necessary  in  many  ways 
as  a  municipal  building.  This  became  more  pointedly  clear 
recently  at  Elkhart  in  the  search  that  was  made  for  a  suitable 
place  for  a  community  Christmas  tree  celebration.  Everything 
was  ready  for  such  a  festival,  but  no  suitable  place  could  be 
found. 

After  a  careful  study  of  local  conditions,  we  have  drawn 
up  for  your  consideration  a  plan  for  an  open  central  square 
and  a  proposed  building  location  plan.  This  scheme  begins 
with  the  idea  that  the  region  in  the  neighborhood  of  High 


and  Lexington  and  Second  and  Third  Streets  is  the  logical 
permanent  center  of  the  public  life  of  Elkhart.  In  this  region 
there  are  already  located  the  Municipal  Building,  the  Public 
Library,  the  Central  and  the  Junior  High  Schools,  and  near¬ 
by  the  Samuel  Strong  School.  In  addition  there  are  in  the 
same  general  section  the  Y.  W.  C.  A.  Building,  the  Masonic 
Temple,  and  five  churches. 

The  form  of  our  recommendation  is  this.  We  propose  as 
an  open  space  a  central  square  extending  from  High  to 
Lexington  and  from  Second  to  Third  Streets,  in  one  corner 
of  which  would  stand,  as  at  present,  the  Municipal  Building 
(which  should  be  improved  by  a  new  facade  on  its  western 
front  facing  the  square).  The  present  public  or  semi-public 
buildings  in  the  neighborhood  would,  of  course,  remain  as  a 
nucleus  of  the  grouping.  In  addition,  as  shown  on  the  plan, 
attractive,  well-arranged  sites  would  be  provided  for  a  com¬ 
munity  building,  a  future  extension  to  the  library,  an  audi¬ 
torium  (on  the  block  with  the  High  School),  an  hotel  site 
at  the  corner  of  Lexington  and  Second  Streets,  and  also  good 
frontages  for  other  public  and  semi-public  buildings  along 
Third  Street. 

A  simple,  practical  layout  is  shown  on  the  plan  for  the 
central  square,  including  a  site  for  a  band  stand. 


TYPICAL  STREET  SECTIONS 

A  detailed  sheet  is  submitted  showing  street  sections  for 
thoroughfare  with  street  car  reservations,  a  business  street 


with  double  car  tracks,  a  major  street,  a  secondary  street  and 
a  minor  street.  The  dimensions  of  the  subdivisions  of  these 
streets  are  given  on  the  plan. 


When  is  it  Cheapest  to  Widen  the  Street? 

When  like  this?  or  this?  or  this? 


widened  at  the  time  the  ad¬ 
jacent  land  is  cut  up  into 
buildinq  lots  almost  without 
cost 


a 


Failinq  this  a  buildinq  line 
may  be  established  that  will  se¬ 
cure  its  eventual  wideninq  when 
the  residences  are  replaced  by 
stores 


with  expensive  commercial 
buildinqs  wideninq  often  be¬ 
comes  prohibitively  expen¬ 
sive. 


From  a  drawing  prepared  by  Robert  Whitten,  City 


Planner  for  the  Cleveland  City  Plan  Commission. 


13 


Studies  for  Riverbank  Development 


Studies  for  Riverbank  Development 


JcAr I  Mc/cn  City  Planner 

Phihp  H Poster  Assoct  ate 
Harvard  Square  CamSr/dye  Mass. 

r^'O 


Rtv  e  RStDC 
DRt\/e 


2R 


Typical  Cr  oss-sect/on  as  at  Riverside  Drive 


// 


Typ/cal  Cross-section  as  at  East  Beardsley  Ave. 


HOUSE 


John  No  ten  City  P/anner 
Ptn  fip  W-  Pos ter  Associate. 
fia.rpa.rd  C</uare  Camttrcdye  Mass. 


Typical  Cross-section  as  at  West  High  Street 


Private 

Property 


Proposed  Pa 
Proper.  ty 


Line 


Typ/cal  Cross-section  as  at  Peninsula  Park 


STUDIES  FOR  RIVER  BANK  DEVELOPMENT 

These  comprise  four  typical  cross  sections  with  locations 
as  fellows: 

1 .  At  Riverside  Drive. 

2.  At  East  Beardsley  Avenue. 

3.  At  West  High  Street 

4.  At  Studebaker  Park. 

The  present  development  of  river  bank  property  in  Elkhart 
leads  us  to  recommend  at  least  four  types  of  improvement. 
The  first  as  shown  at  Riverside  Drive  provides  for  a  planted 
bank  with  a  street  of  typical  cross  section  at  the  top — a  path, 
tree  planting  strip  and  driveway.  The  second  at  East  Beards¬ 
ley  Avenue  provides  a  retaining  wall  at  the  water’s  edge  and 
a  narrow  strip  of  proposed  park  property,  with  a  five  foot 
path  close  to  the  river,  there  being  no  roadway  in  this  instance 
between  the  private  property  and  the  water  front.  The  third 
at  West  High  Street  provides  simply  for  a  planted  frontage 
of  park  property,  improving  the  appearance  of  the  park  from 
across  the  river,  but  on  account  cf  the  steepness  of  the  grade, 
no  walk  or  drive  through  it.  The  fourth  at  Studebaker  Park, 
a  path  only  through  the  park  property  at  the  top  of  the  grade. 

The  topography  of  the  banks  of  the  rivers  in  Elkhart  is 
exceedingly  varied,  and  therefore  we  recommend  that  this 
variety  of  topography  have  definite  recognition  in  the  varied 
form  and  character  of  the  park  design  and  planting. 

In  accordance  with  the  agreement  the  General  Plans  sub¬ 
mitted  with  this  statement  and  the  Planning  Survey  place 
before  you  our  main  recommendations  for  the  improvement  of 
Elkhart’s  city  plan.  We  ask  your  consideration  of  these 
proposals.  Please  bear  in  mind  what  is  so  often  overlooked 
by  cities  to  which  city  planning  is  new — that  the  program  is 


for  a  long  period,  perhaps  a  generation  or  more.  Some  things 
are  urgent,  and  should  be  taken  up  without  delay.  Others 
may  without  disadvantage  wait.  It  is  most  essential,  however, 
that  the  relationship  between  various  parts  of  the  plan  should 
be  fully  recognized  and  kept  in  mind  in  making  partial  plans. 
It  is  also  appropriate  at  this  time  to  mention  the  advantages 
of  providing  a  method  of  following  general  planning  with 
detail  plans  by  a  city  planner,  as  a  basis  for  those  projects 
which  are  to  be  executed  first. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

JOHN  NOLEN 

July  1st,  1922.  City  Planner. 


SUBSCRIBERS  TO  CITY  PLAN  FUND 


E.  Atkins 
W.  A.  Barker 
A.  H.  Beardsley 
A.  R.  Beardsley 
James  A.  Bell 

G.  C.  Berkey 

H.  W.  Boles 
J.  C.  Boss 

E.  C.  Borneman 
Herman  Borneman,  Sr. 
H.  F.  Borneman 
James  F.  Boyer 
W.  G.  Bussard 
J.  H.  Collins 
0.  G.  Curtis  &  Son 
M.  U.  Demarest 
C.  S.  Drake 

Elkhart-Goshen  Cleaning 
&  Dyeing  Co. 

Elkhart  Printing  Co. 
Elkhart  Rubber  Co. 

J.  C.  Fleming 
J.  C.  Foster 

14 


W.  H.  Foster 
C.  W.  Frink 
C.  D.  Greenleaf 
Edna  E.  Grimes 

E.  J.  Gulick 
L.  D.  Hall 
H.  M.  Hayes 
Chas.  W.  Haywood 
H.  Helfrick  &  Sons 

F.  D.  Hershberger 
Wm.  B.  Hile 

B.  D.  Houseworth 
Geo.  E.  Howe 

Isbell  Lumber  &  Coal 
Company 

G.  0.  Johnson 
Ed  C.  Keene 
Arthur  Kegerreis 
Geo.  C.  Kistner 
John  I.  Liver 
Marchesseau  Plumbing 

Company 

C.  E.  Metcalf 


C.  F.  Miles 
C.  L.  Monger 
R.  W.  Monger 
Ora  Neff 
W.  H.  Patterson 
Poorbaugh  &  Riley 
J.  B.  Porter 
A.  W.  Pounder 
Reid  Electric  &  Supply 
Company 
Geo.  E.  Rush 
W.  J.  Schult 
W.  L.  Shafer 
A.  J.  Stryker 
Roy  R.  Sykes 
Wilbur  Templin 

G.  B.  Tuthill 
J.  F.  Walton 
Wm.  E.  Wider 
The  Rudolph  Wurltizer 
Manufacturing  Co. 
Conrad  Ziesel 
Edw.  B.  Zigler 


MANY  A  CITY  WOULD  GIVE  A  MILLION  DOLLARS  FOR  ELKHART’S  RIVER  BANKS 


15 


SOME  OF  ELKHART’S  BEAUTIFUL  BILL  BOARDS  AND  THE  UGLY  SPOTS  THAT  THEY  HIDE! 

16 


Other  Expert  Opinions  on  City  Planning 


MAKE  BIG  PLANS— AIM  HIGH 

Make  no  little  plans;  they  have  no  magic  to  stir  men’s 
blood  and  probably  themselvesi  will  not  be  recognized.  Make 
big  plans;  aim  high  in  hope  and  work,  remembering  that  a 
noble,  logical  diagram  once  recorded  will  never  die,  but  long 
after  we  are  gone  will  be  a  living  thing,  asserting  itself  with 
ever-growing  insistency.  Remember  that  our  sons  and  grand¬ 
sons  are  going  to  do  things  that  would  stagger  us.  Let  your 
watchword  be  order  and  your  beacon  beauty. — Daniel  H. 
Burnham,  “Father”  of  the  Plan  of  Chicago. 


THE  EFFICIENT  CITY  IS  THE  “CITY  BEAUTIFUL” 

There  has  been  a  wrong  impression  that  city  planning  is 
nothing  more  or  less  than  the  embellishment  and  beautifica¬ 
tion  of  the  city,  whereas,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  the  lopping 
off  of  the  unnecessary  things;  it  is  the  cutting  down  to  the 
practical  things  that  makes  your  city  efficient,  that  makes  it 
responsive  to  every  call  that  is  put  upon  it;  and  out  of  that 
order,  out  of  that  very  rhythm  of  movement,  out  of  the  ability 
to  do  the  things  placed  upon  it,  will  come  the  “City  Beauti¬ 
ful” — J.  C.  Nichols*  from  a  paper  read  before  the  twenty- 
fourth  annual  convention  of  the  National  Association  of  Real 
Estate  Boards. 

CITY  PLANNING  AND  THE  “CITY  BEAUTIFUL” 

City  planning  is  widely  believed  to  be  a  “City  Beautiful” 
idea.  In  the  sense  of  providing  a  city  with  necessary  public 
works  which  shall  be  attractive  but  not  additionally  expensive 
because  of  such  attractiveness,  city  planning  may  truly  be 
said  to  be  a  “City  Beautiful”  idea.  The  “City  Beautiful” 
may  be  promoted  by  such  objects  of  city  planning  as  proper 
street  design;  clean,  noiseless  pavements;  removal  of  un¬ 
necessary  poles  and  wires;  planting  of  shade  trees;  uniform 
sidewalks;  absence  of  unsightly  signs.  But  these  are  things 
which  should  be  done,  not  expensive  extravagances.  Beauty 
and  extravagance  are  not  handmaidens.  We  can  have  beauty 
without  extravagance,  and  in  this  sense  city  planning  may  be 
considered  a  “City  Beautiful”  idea.  Where  utility  is  sacrificed 
and  extravagance  substituted  the  “City  Beautiful”  may  be 
promoted;  city  planning  is  not. — Harland  Bartholomew,  City 
Planner. 


BUILDING  THE  CITY  OF  TOMORROW 

When  we  build,  let  us  think  that  we  build  forever.  Let  it 
not  be  for  the  present  delight,  not  for  present  use  alone.  Let 
it  be  such  work  as  our  descendents  will  thank  us  for,  and  let 
us  think,  as  we  lay  stone  on  stone,  that  a  time  is  to  come  when 
those  stones  will  be  held  sacred  because  our  hands  have 
touched  them,  and  that  men  will  say  as  they  look  upon  the 
labor  and  wrought  substance  of  them,  “See!  This  our  Fathers 
did  for  us.” — John  Ruskin. 

THE  CITY  AND  RECONSTRUCTION 

Good  planning  for  cities  and  closely-built  towns  and  villages 
is  not  primarily  a  matter  of  aesthetics,  but  of  economics.  The 
main  object  is  to  prevent  or  remedy  the  physical  and  moral 
evils  and  losses  which  accompany  congestion  of  population. 

The  laying  out  of  most  American  cities  has  been  casual, 
and  thoughtless  of  future  needs.  The  common  rectangular 
layout  without  any  well-considered  diagonals,  causes  a  great 
daily  waste  of  human  and  animal  labor  and  of  fuel,  while 
high  buldings,  narrow  streets,  and  lack  of  open  spaces  make 
it  impossible  to  keep  the  cities  well  aired  and  sunned.  To 
improve  or  reform  the  layout  of  most  American  cities  is  there¬ 
fore  a  great  public  need,  not  only  for  beauty’s  sake,  but  for 
the  sake  of  the  health,  efficiency,  and  happiness  of  their 
people. — Charles  W.  Eliot,  President  Emeritus  of  Harvard 
University. 


What  will  the 
change  be  forty 
years  from  now? 

At  right — 

Main  Street 
in  1923. 

Below — 
forty  years  ago. 


17 


Z  0  N  I  N  G — A  Supplement 

(EDITOR’S  NOTE — Dr.  John  Nolen  prepared,  as  a  definite  part  of  his  Elkhart  City  Plan  service,  a  tentative  Zoning  Ordinance  for  Elkhart.  This 
has,  for  several  months,  been  under  the  consideration  of  both  the  City  Plan  Commission  and  City  Council,  with  some  minor  changes  suggested  and 
incorporated,  but  as  yet  in  an  unfinished  state  and  not  adopted  at  the  time  this  publication  is  issued,  October,  1923.  Such  being  the  case,  it  was  thought 
best  not  to  include  the  proposed  ordinance  herein,  but  simply  to  give  informative  expressions  for  Elkhart  citizens  from  men  who  know  what  zoning 
is  and  what  it  means.) 


ZONING  ONE  OF  THREE  BIG  FACTORS  IN  CiTY 

PLANNING 

BY  JOHN  NOLEN 

The  districting  or  zoning  of  a  city  is,  or  should  be,  one  of 
the  three  fundamental  parts  of  every  comprehensive  city  plan. 
The  other  two  are:  Channels  of  transportation,  including 
railroads,  streets  and  water  ways;  and  public  open  spaces, 
parks,  play  grounds,  etc.  Districting  is  as  far-reaching  and 
important  as  each  of  the  others,  but  it  is  singular  in  this 
point,  that  it  costs  the  city  nothing  to  put  it  into  execution; 
involves  no  cost  other  than  the  trifling  sum  needed  for  the 
study  of  the  problem  and  the  prepartion  of  a  plan.  In  fact 
if  the  distributing  is  wise,  it  will  afford  not  only  stability,  but 
additional  income  to  property  owners,  and  also  to  the  city. 
Such  a  plan  for  districting  should  be  part  of  a  comprehensive 
city  plan.  Provision  for  mam  thoroughfares  and  for  rapid 
transit,  the  selection  of  land  for  parks,  and  other  features  of 
a  city  plan,  will  surely  affect  the  districting  of  the  city. 

Districting,  after  all,  is  nothing  more  than  an  extension 
and  wider  application  of  the  principle  of  restrictions.  This 
principle  is  well  understood,  and  has  been  long  applied  by 
private  owners,  and  to  some  extent  by  the  public.  It  is  a 
principle  that  is  particularly  well  understood  in  the  United 
States  by  real  estate  operators.  The  restrictions  placed  upon 


Zoning  Will  Protect  Residential  Neighborhoods  From  The  Building  Buzzards 


— Philadelphia  Housing  Association. 


the  purchaser  in  the  conveyance  of  property  often  include  a 
long  list  of  the  kinds  of  business  which  are  classified  as 
nuisances,  and  which  may  not  be  established  or  maintained 
upon  the  property.  These  restrictions  also  include  regulation 
as  to  stables  and  garages,  fences  and  walls,  setback  of  build¬ 
ings  from  street  and  from  lot  lines,  the  minimum  cost  of 
building,  easements  and  rights  of  way  for  public  utilities,  and 
in  some  cases,  the  approval  of  house  plans  and  specifications. 
The  point  of  view  with  regard  to  these  restrictions  is  indicated 
by  the  fact  that  the  real  estate  operator  now  often  refers  to 
them  as  “safeguards.”  It  has  became  evident,  however,  that 
we  cannot  depend  upon  private  restrictions  imposed  by  a  land 
owner  for  the  districting  of  a  modern  city. 

The  action  of  the  city  of  New  York  in  approving  the  report 
of  the  commission  on  building  districts  and  restrictions  is, 
perhaps,  the  most  important  single  step  that  has  been  taken 
in  this  country  in  the  planning  of  cities.  The  principles  which 
are  fundamental  in  the  commission’s  plan  are  as  follows: 

1 .  Provision  for  light  and  air  is  a  primary  essential  in  building 
regulation.  2.  Building  regulations  in  each  section  of  the 
city  should  be  adapted  to  the  requirements  of  that  section. 
3.  It  is  desirable,  as  a  general  rule,  to  treat  all  buildings  in  a 
given  block  according  to  a  uniform  rule,  because  there  should 
be  a  substantially  uniform  contribution  from  each  owner  to 
the  light  and  air  of  the  block.  4.  A  building  is  usually  appro¬ 
priately  located  when  it  is  surrounded  by  buildings  of  similar 
type  and  use.  Order  in  building  development  is  essential  to 
the  health,  safety  and  comfort  of  the  public,  and  the  best 
means  of  conserving  and  enhancing  values.  3.  All  residence 
sections  should  be  protected  against  unnecessary  invasion  by 
commercial  and  industrial  users. 

The  gist  of  the  New  York  regulations  may  be  stated  as 
fellows:  All  future  buildings  will  be  restricted  as  to  their 

height,  size  and  use,  the  restrictions  being  different  in  different 
parts  of  the  city;  the  height  of  buildings  will  vary  with  the 
width  of  the  street,  from  one  time  to  two  and  one-half  times, 
with  exceptions  for  buildings  set  back  from  the  street  line  and 
for  towers ;  specified  areas  of  open  space  are  required  in  the 
different  zones  for  yards  and  courts,  these  automatically  in¬ 
creasing  with  the  increased  height  of  the  buildings;  in  use, 
residence  and  business  districts  will  be  reasonably  protected 
from  the  invasion  of  industry  and  manufacturing.  The  law 
is  not  retroactive.  It  applies  only  to  the  future,  and  reason¬ 
able  changes  in  the  law  have  been  provided  for.  Nothing  is 
said  about  the  effect  of  the  law  on  the  appearance  of  the  city 
in  the  sense  of  making  it  more  beautiful,  but  it  is  recognized 
that  the  result  will  be  a  more  orderly  and  more  harmonious 
city,  and  therefore  more  attractive. 

Fortunately  for  those  interested  in  this  movement,  a  recent 
decision  of  the  United  States  supreme  court  upholding  the 
right  of  the  city  of  Los  Angeles  to  remove  a  manufacturing 
plant  from  a  residental  district  fixes  the  essential  principle 
involved  in  the  establishment  of  differentiated  building  dis¬ 
tricts.  Justice  McKenna  said,  in  rendering  this  opinion:  “A 
vested  interest  cannot  be  asserted  against  the  police  power 
of  a  state  because  of  conditions  once  obtaining.  To  so  hold 
would  preclude  development  and  fix  a  city  forever  in  its 
primitive  conditions.  There  must  be  progress,  and  if  in  its 
march  private  interests  are  in  the  way,  they  must  yield  to  the 
good  of  the  community.” 

It  is  surprising  that  so  few  American  cities  have  acted  in 
this  matter.  It  is  now  the  one  great  outstanding  opportunity 
in  city  planning.  The  New  York  principles  point  the  way, 
and  the  courts  have  given  an  unqualified  endorsement  as  to 

18 


ZONING  AND  CITY  PLANNING  WOULD  PREVENT  FUTURE  INVASIONS  LIKE  THESE  INTO  ELKHART’S  HOME  DISTRICTS 

I — A  factory.  2,  4,  5,  6  and  8 — Neighborhood  grocery  stores.  3 — A  garage.  7 — An  unnecessary  street  jog — at  Michigan  street  and  Strong  avenue. 

See  “Mam  Thoroughfares"  map  for  Doctor  Nolen’s  suggestion  for  Michigan  Mall. 

19 


20 


legality.  The  public  mind  is  awakened.  Conditions  are  pecu¬ 
liarly  favorable.  Action  should  follow  rapidly,  but  it  should 
be  based  upon  a  survey  of  local  conditions  and  be  accom¬ 
panied  by  a  comprehensive  city  plan  of  which  the  districting 
should  be  an  integral  part,  perhaps  the  principal  part,  so  far 
as  immediate  action  is  concerned. 


WHAT  IS  ZONING? 

BY  LAWSON  PURDY. 

President  of  the  National  Conference  of  City  Planning. 

The  term  “zoning”  has  come  to  be  used  to  mean  the 
regulation  of  buildings  in  a  city.  It  signifies  such  regulation 
of  the  height,  area  and  use  of  buildings  as  will  protect  each 
land-owner  from  the  impairment  of  his  share  of  light  and 
access,  as  will  protect  his  ears  from  unseemly  noises,  his  nose 
from  unpleasant  smells,  and  his  eyes  from  offensive  sights. 
Some  of  the  purposes  of  city  planning  and  zoning  are: 

To  prevent  undue  congestion  of  population. 

To  insure  better  sanitary  conditions,  providing  minimum 
requirements  for  light  and  air. 

To  simplify  the  problem  of  street  traffic  regulations. 

To  make  possible  a  sensible  and  more  practical  street 
program  for  the  future. 

To  insure  the  permanency  of  character  of  districts  when 
once  established. 

To  stabilize  and  protect  property  values  and  investments. 

To  protect  and  maintain  the  home  and  home  neighbor¬ 
hoods. 

To  offer  a  safe  district  in  which  industries  may  be  located 
without  protest  and  with  every  facility  to  do  business. 

To  render  possible  great  economics  in  paving  city  streets 
through  a  decrease  in  the  width  of  roadways,  where  the  size 
and  number  of  buildings  are  limited. 

To  prevent  the  scattering  and  intrusion  of  any  inappro¬ 
priate  and  destructive  uses  of  buildings  which  deteriorate  and 
decrease  property  values. 


DO  WE  NEED  ZONING? 

BY  JOHN  M.  CRIES. 

Chief,  Division  of  Building  and  Housing,  Bureau  of  Standards, 
Department  of  Commerce. 

Some  one  has  asked,  “Does  your  city  keep  its  gas  range 
in  the  parlor  and  its  piano  in  the  kitchen?”  That  is  what 
many  an  American  city  permits  its  household  to  do  for  it. 

We  know  what  to  think  of  a  household  in  which  an  un¬ 
disciplined  daughter  makes  fudge  in  the  parlor,  in  which  her 
sister  leaves  soiled  clothes  soaking  in  the  bathtub,  while  father 
throws  his  muddy  shoes  on  the  stairs,  and  little  Johnny  makes 
beautiful  mud  pies  on  the  front  steps. 

Yet  many  American  cities  do  the  same  sort  of  thing  when 
they  allow  stores  to  crowd  in  at  random  among  private  dwell¬ 
ings,  and  factories  and  public  garages  to  come  elbowing  in 
among  neat  retail  stores  or  well-kept  apartment  houses.  Cities 
do  no  better  when  they  allow  office  buildings  so  tall  and  bulky 
and  so  closely  crowded  that  the  lower  floors  not  only  become 
too  dark  and  unsatisfactory  for  human  use  but  for  that  very 
reason  fail  to  earn  a  fair  cash  return  to  the  individual  in¬ 
vestors. 

“Live  and  let  live”  is  a  better  motto  for  the  modern  city 
than  the  savage  one  of  “dog  eat  dog.” 

It  is  this  stupid,  wasteful  jumble  which  zoning  will  prevent 
and  gradually  correct.  We  must  remember,  however,  that 
while  zoning  is  a  very  important  part  of  city  planning,  it 
should  go  hand  in  hand  with  planning  streets  and  providing 
for  parks  and  playgrounds  and  other  essential  features  of  a 
well-equipped  city.  Alone  it  is  no  universal  panacea  for  ali 
municipal  ills,  but  as  part  of  a  larger  program  it  pays  the  city 
and  the  citizens  a  quicker  return  than  any  other  form  of  civic 
improvement. 


DOES  ZONING  PAY? 

BY  JOHN  IHLDER. 

Manager  Civic  Development  Department,  Chamber  of  Commerce 
of  the  United  States. 

Does  zoning  pay?  Yes,  if  it  is  true  that  a  nickel  saved 
is  a  nickel  earned.  Zoning  pays  not  only  in  that  it  makes 
the  return  on  real  estate  investment  more  sure  but  also  in 

that  it  prevents  or  lessens  capital  loss.  Among  the  greatest 

losses  from  which  our  cities  suffer  are: 

1.  Depreciated  values  due  to  changing  character  of  a 
district. 

2.  Fire  losses. 

3.  Mis-spent  taxes. 

That  zoning  stabilizes  the  character  of  a  district,  prevents 
the  blight  due  to  a  mixture  of  mutually  harmful  uses,  is 
generally  recognized.  The  residence  that  cost  $5,000  or 
$10,000  loses  half  its  value  if  a  store  is  opened  next  door, 
loses  even  more  if  its  new  neighbor  is  a  factory  or  a  garage. 

The  retail  store  that  did  a  thriving  business  will  find  its  trade 

diminishing  if  the  neighboring  property  is  occupied  by  business 
or  industry  offensive  or  disturbing  to  customers.  The  industry 
that  has  residences  for  neighbors  is  nearly  sure  to  be  handi¬ 
capped  in  operation  or  expansion  by  complaints  of  its  noise, 
its  odors,  its  smoke  or  some  other  manifestation  of  its  activity. 

These  facts  have  been  recognized  though  not  always  real¬ 
ized,  as  long  as  men  have  lived  in  cities.  The  oldest  towns 
had  their  different  quarters  or  bazaars;  the  butchers  tended 
to  congregate  in  one  section,  the  jewelers  in  another,  the  cloth 
merchants  in  another,  because  experience  showed  this  was  best 
for  business.  Zoning  simply  utilizes  this  age  old  experience 
and  applies  it  logically  and  in  orderly  fashion. 

Fire  losses  are  among  the  great  preventable  wastes  of 
America.  They  are  increased  by  jumbling  different  kinds  of 
occupations  together  and  by  crowding  buildings  too  close  to 
each  other.  In  our  cities  business  men  often  pay  higher  in¬ 
surance  rates  than  they  would  if  their  fire  hazard  were  not 
increased  by  neighboring  properties.  Householders  pay  more 
than  they  would  if  there  were  wider  spaces  between  houses 
or  if  business  or  factory  buildings  were  not  mixed  in  with 
residences.  This  is  a  constant  and  unnecessary  tax.  Zoning 
reduces  it. 

Zoning  also  reduces  the  other  tax,  that  paid  not  to  private 
companies  but  to  public  treasuries.  Public  taxes  for  public 
improvements  are  a  real  item  to  every  business  man  and  to 


THE  AWKWARD  SQUAD 

— From  "Progress,"  Pittsburgh. 


21 


every  householder.  Figures  from  eight  American  cities  show 
an  average  per  capita  tax  of  nearly  $22.00.  The  chief  items 
in  this  are:  Education  (schools  and  libraries)  $7.50,  high¬ 
ways,  nearly  $4.00,  police  $2.34,  fire  department  $2.63,  health 
conservation  $1.53.  To  the  last  should  be  added  the  cost  of 
public  hospitals  and  a  large  part  of  public  charity  appropria¬ 
tions  due  to  failure  to  conserve  health,  nearly  $1.00  more,  a 

total  of  $19.00. 

All  of  these  are  affected  by  zoning.  Some  of  our  good 
and  expensive  school  buildings  are  of  doubtful  value  because 
of  the  environment  that  has  developed  about  them.  They 
should  be  and  many  will  be  scrapped  long  before  they  are 
worn  out  simply  because  of  the  neighborhood.  Teachers  and 
pupils  are  only  partly  efficient  because  of  their  surroundings, — 
noisy,  dirty,  dangerous,  distracting.  The  loss  here  is  constant 
and  it  is  permanent,  for  the  pupil  can  not  live  over  again  his 
partly  wasted  years.  He  goes  out  into  life  handicapped. 

Our  highways  are  costing  more  and  more  every  year.  If 
a  highway  is  built  to  serve  a  miscellany  of  uses,  or  without 
any  clear  idea  of  the  character  of  its  district,  it  is  sure  to 
cost  more  than  it  should.  Wide,  heavy  pavement  suitable  for 
trucking  costs  much.  It  should  be  confined  to  stretches  of 
streets  directly  past  establishments  needing  it  and  from  them 
by  the  shortest  routes  to  destinations,  such  as  freight  stations. 
If  it  passes  through  residence  districts  it  not  only  represents 
waste  in  cost  of  unnecessary  construction  but  waste  of  time 
and  energy  on  the  part  of  truckers.  Narrow,  more  lightly 
paved  roadways  are  adequate  to  the  needs  of  residence  dis¬ 
tricts  except  in  the  case  of  a  few  arterial  highways.  But  if 
they  are  used  by  heavy  trucks  they  soon  are  broken  up  and 
must  be  repaired. 

The  cost  of  laying  sewers  and  water  mains  is  an  item  of 
consequence.  In  a  properly  zoned  city  it  is  possible  to  figure 
just  what  volume  these  services  will  have  to  carry  when  a 
district  is  fully  built  up.  Then  the  right  size  can  be  laid  in 
the  first  place.  In  an  unzoned  city  the  safe  thing  is  to  err 
on  the  side  of  adequacy  and  lay  pipes  larger  and  more  costly 


ZONING  WOULD  PREVENT  THIS 

— Courtesy  “Atlanta  Journal.” 

22 


than  are  likely  to  be  needed  because  this  waste  is  so  much 
less  than  the  waste  of  replacing  pipes  within  a  few  years. 

The  work  of  our  police  and  of  our  fire  departments  is 
simplified  in  a  zoned  city.  A  conglomeration  of  dwellings 
with  gas  tanks,  lumber  yards  and  warehouses  offers  infinite 
possibilities  for  trouble.  This  kind  of  conglomeration  also 
adds  to  the  work  of  the  health  department  both  on  its  pre¬ 
ventive  side  and  its  hospital  side. 

So  zoning  does  pay. 

J* 

CONSTITUTIONALITY  OF  ZONING 

BY  HERBERT  S.  SWAN. 

Executive  Secretary,  Zoning  Committee,  New  York. 

(From  "The  Zone  Plan,”  City  Plan  Commission,  St.  Louis.) 

Zoning  is  an  exercise,  not  of  the  power  of  eminent  domain, 
but  of  the  police  power.  When  property  is  taken  under  the 
power  of  eminent  domain  compensation  must  be  paid  the 
owner  if  damage  can  be  shown.  No  compensation  is  paid  for 
property  taken,  or  for  limitations  imposed  upon  the  use  of 
property,  under  the  police  power. 

The  two  questions  of  fundamental  interest  to  property 
owners  in  a  municipality  adopting  a  comprehensive  plan 
controlling  building  development  are: 

1 .  Whether  such  regulations  come  within  the  purview  of 
the  police  power;  and 

2.  Whether  the  particular  regulations  adopted  can  be 
sustained  as  a  competent  exercise  of  that  power. 

In  answering  the  first  question,  it  may  be  stated  that  it  is 
no  longer  open  to  doubt  that  cities  in  this  country  can  apply 
different  building  regulations  to  different  districts.  The  deci¬ 
sions  of  various  state  courts  as  well  as  the  United  States 
Supreme  Court  are  conclusive  upon  this  point.  In  Welch  v. 
Swasey,  79  N.  E.  145  (1907)  for  instance,  the  Supreme 
Judicial  Court  of  Massachusetts  sustained  the  validity  of  the 
act  limiting  the  height  of  buildings  differently  in  different 
districts  in  Boston.  In  Cochran  v.  Preston,  108  Md.  200 
(1908)  the  Court  of  Appeals  in  Maryland  sustained  a  some¬ 
what  similar  act  limiting  the  height  of  buildings  in  Baltimore. 
The  decision  of  the  Massachusetts  court  was  confirmed  by 
the  United  States  Supreme  Court  in  Welch  v.  Swasey,  214 
U.  S.  91  (1908). 

Zoning  limitations  on  the  use  of  buildings  have  also  been 
sustained  as  being  within  the  scope  of  the  police  power. 

Such  regulations  have  been  sustained  by  the  courts  in 

half  a  dozen  states  (Arkansas,  California,  Illinois,  New  York, 
Texas  and  Washington)  as  well  as  by  the  United  States 

Supreme  Court.  Even  retroactive  regulations,  which  have 
weeded  out  undesirable  business  establishments  from  certain 
districts,  have  been  approved  by  the  highest  courts  in  Arkan¬ 
sas  and  California,  and  on  appeal,  by  the  United  States 

Supreme  Court. 

How  broad  a  scope  has  the  police  power?  Answer  to  this 
question  is  of  the  greatest  interest  to  those  who  have  the 
future  planning  of  a  city  at  heart  for  so  much  city  improve¬ 
ment  depends  upon  what  may  or  what  may  not  be  done  under 
the  police  power. 

The  police  power,  of  course,  extends  to  the  public  health, 
mcrals  and  safety.  But  the  power  of  the  state  by  appropriate 
legislation  to  provide  for  the  public  convenience  stands  upon 
the  same  ground  precisely  as  its  power  by  appropriate  legis¬ 
lation  to  protect  the  public  health,  the  public  morals,  or  the 
public  safety  (Lake  Shore  and  Michigan  Southern  Ry.  Co.  v. 
Ohio,  173  U.  S.  285,  1899).  In  Bacon  v.  Walker,  204  U.  S. 
311  (1907)  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  held  that  the 
police  power  of  a  state  embraces  regulations  designed  to  pro¬ 
mote  the  public  convenience  or  the  general  prosperity,  as  well 
as  those  to  promote  public  health,  morals  or  safety;  it  is 
net  confined  to  the  suppression  of  what  is  offensive,  disorderly 
or  unsanitary,  but  extends  to  what  is  for  the  greatest  welfare 
of  the  state.  The  same  view  was  expressed  in  Chicago,  Bur- 


lington  &  Quincy  Railway  Co.  v.  Drainage  Commissioners, 
200  U.  S.  561  (1906);  and  in  Eubank  v.  Richmond,  33 
Sup.  Ct.  76  (1912).  A  still  more  extensive  scope  was  given 
to  the  police  power  in  Noble  State  Bank  v.  Haskell,  31  Sup. 
Ct.  186  (1911).  In  this  case  the  Court  stated:  “It  may 

be  said  in  a  general  way  that  the  police  power  extends  to 

all  the  great  public  needs.  It  may  be  put  forth  in  aid  of 

what  is  sanctioned  by  usage,  or  held  by  the  prevailing 

morality  or  strong  and  preponderant  opinion  to  be  greatly 
and  immediately  necessary  to  the  public  welfare.” 

The  fourteenth  amendment  to  the  constitution  does  not 
curtail  the  police  power  of  the  states  when  properly  exercised. 
The  United  States  Supreme  Court  stated  in  Barbier  v.  Con¬ 
nolly,  113  U.  S.  27  (1885)  that  it  was  not  designed  to 
interfere  with  the  police  power  of  the  state  “to  prescribe 
regulations,  to  promote  the  health,  peace,  morals,  education 
and  good  order  of  the  people,  and  to  legislate  so  as  to  in¬ 
crease  the  industries  of  the  state,  develop  its  resources,  and 
add  to  its  wealth  and  prosperity.” 

Zoning  is  designed  to  promote  not  only  the  public  health, 
morals  and  safety,  but  also  the  public  convenience  and  general 
prosperity  of  the  community.  If  the  police  powers  extended 
only  to  the  public  health,  morals  and  safety,  it  might  be 
difficult  in  certain  instances  to  show  conclusively  that  every 
detail  of  a  zoning  scheme  came  within  a  competent  exercise 
of  the  police  power.  But  with  the  scope  of  the  police  power 
so  extended  as  to  include  the  promotion  of  the  public  com¬ 
fort  and  convenience,  the  addition  of  wealth  and  prosperity 
to  the  state,  the  increase  of  its  industry,  and  the  development 
of  its  resources,  it  is  hoped  that  every  feature  of  it  can  be 
shown  to  be  a  legitimate  exercise  of  the  police  power. 

Although  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  refrains  from 
any  attempt  to  define  with  any  exact  precision  the  limits  of 
the  police  power,  its  disposition  is,  nevertheless,  to  favor  the 
validity  of  laws  relating  to  matters  completely  within  the 
territory  of  the  state  enacting  them.  It  will  interfere  with 
local  legislative  authority,  especially  when  its  action  is  ap¬ 
proved  by  the  highest  court  of  the  state  whose  people  are 
directly  concerned,  only  when  it  is  plain  and  palpable  that 
it  has  no  real  or  substantial  relation  to  the  public  health, 
safety,  morals  or  general  welfare  (Cusack  v.  City  of  Chicago, 

37  Sup.  Ct.  192,  1917). 

The  answer  to  the  second  question  it  seems  will  depend 
upon,  first,  whether  the  height,  use  and  area  classifications 
can  be  shown  reasonable;  and,  second,  whether  their  appli¬ 
cation  to  specific  districts  can  be  shown  reasonable.  If  the 
reasonableness  of  both  the  classification  and  the  application 
of  the  several  regulations  can  be  demonstrated  then  the 
victory  will  be  complete.  The  attitude  of  the  United  States 
Supreme  Court  toward  such  regulations  as  have  come  before 
it  furnishes  strong  ground  for  the  hope  that  zoning  will  be 
upheld  in  full. 

Zoning  is  not  designed  to  operate  oppressively  upon  any 
owner  or  upon  any  group  of  owners.  Each  scheme  is  framed 
with  the  greatest  consideration  for  property  rights  commensu¬ 
rate  with  the  public  welfare.  But  despite  this  fact  certain 
owners  will  no  doubt  feel  themselves  aggrieved.  This,  how¬ 
ever,  does  not  make  the  law  any  less  valid  so  long  as  its 
provisions  are  not  arbitrary.  It  is  believed  that  the  regula¬ 
tions  adopted  in  any  city  may  meet  all  the  tests  of  consti¬ 
tutionality  laid  down  by  the  United  States  Supreme  Court. 
In  Barbier  v.  Connolly,  113  U.  S.  27  (1885),  the  Supreme 
Court  discussed  the  question  as  follows:  “Regulations  for 
these  purposes  may  press  with  more  or  less  weight  upon  one 
than  upon  another,  but  they  are  designed,  not  to  impose  un¬ 
equal  or  unnecessary  restrictions  upon  any  one,  but  to  promote, 
with  as  little  individual  inconvenience  as  possible,  the  general 
good.  Though,  in  many  respects,  necessarily  special  in  their 
character,  they  do  not  furnish  just  ground  of  complaint  if 
they  operate  alike  upon  all  persons  and  property  under  the 
same  circumstances  and  conditions.  Class  legislation,  dis¬ 
criminating  against  some  and  favoring  others,  is  prohibited; 


but  legislation  which,  in  carrying  out  a  public  purpose,  is 
limited  in  its  application,  if  within  the  sphere  of  its  operation 
it  affects  alike  all  persons  similarly  situated,  is  not  within  the 
(14th)  amendment.” 

The  attitude  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  toward 
zoning  was  discussed  in  concise  and  clear  language  in  sus¬ 
taining  the  constitutionality  of  a  zoning  ordinance  in  Little 
Rock,  Arkansas  (Reinman  v.  Little  Rock,  35  Sup.  Ct.  511 
1914).  “So  long  as  the  regulation  in  question,”  said  the 
Court,  “is  not  shown  to  be  clearly  unreasonable  and  arbitrary, 
and  operates  uniformly  upon  all  persons  similarly  situated  in 
the  particular  district,  the  district  itself  not  appearing  to  have 
been  arbitrarily  selected,  it  cannot  be  judicially  declared  that 
there  is  a  deprivation  of  property  without  due  process  of 
law,  or  a  denial  of  the  equal  protection  of  the  laws,  within 
the  meaning  of  the  14th  Amendment.” 

In  Hadacheck  v.  Sebastian,  36  Sup  Ct.  143  (1915)  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court  gave  frank  expression  to  the 
view  that  a  city’s  expansion  and  growth  are  superior  to  the 
whims  of  a  few  capricious  land  owners  who  might  wish  to 
thwart  the  greater  welfare  of  the  community:  “The  police 
power  of  a  state  cannot  be  arbitrarily  exercised.  The  principle 
is  a  familiar  one,  but  in  any  given  case  it  must  plainly  appear 
to  apply.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  we  are  dealing  with 
one  of  the  most  essential  powers  of  government — one  that  is 
the  least  limitable.  It  may,  indeed,  seem  harsh  in  its  exer¬ 
cise,  usually  is  on  some  individual,  but  the  imperative  necessity 
of  its  existence  precludes  any  limitation  upon  it,  when  not 
exerted  arbitrarily.  A  vested  interest  cannot  be  asserted, 
against  it,  because  of  conditions  once  obtaining.  To  so  hold 
would  preclude  development  and  fix  a  city  forever  in  its 
primitive  conditions.  There  must  be  progress,  and  if  in  its 
march  private  interests  are  in  the  way,  they  must  yield  to  the 
good  of  the  community.” 

An  examination  of  the  decision  of  the  United  States 
Supreme  Court,  and  especially  of  the  four  great  cases  on 
zoning — Welch  v.  Swasey,  Reinman  v.  Little  Rock,  Hada¬ 
check  v.  Sebastian  and  Cusack  v.  City  of  Chicago — offers 
every  encouragement  for  the  belief  that  zoning  may  be  sus¬ 
tained  by  the  highest  court  in  the  land.  Care  must,  however, 
be  exercised  in  drafting  the  regulations  for  each  locality  so 
that  they  fit  local  conditions,  that  they  are  not  arbitrary  or 
discriminatory,  and  that  they  do  not  fall  within  the  ban  of 
class  legislation.  Above  all,  reasonableness  must  be  the  test 
of  both  the  classification  and  the  districts  established.  Whether 
the  legality  of  any  particular  zoning  scheme  will  be  sustained 
seems  to  depend  more  upon  the  carefulness  and  fairness  put 
into  the  preparation  of  the  regulations  than  upon  a  lack  in 
the  forward-looking  attitude  of  the  court. 

REASONABLE  AND  COMPREHENSIVE  ZONING  IS  LEGAL 

The  enactment  of  a  zoning  ordinance  is  an  exercise  of  the 
police  or  community  power.  Regulations  to  abolish  public 
nuisances  and  to  require  safe  building  construction  by  speci¬ 
fying  the  strength  and  kind  of  material,  fire-proofing,  fire- 
escapes,  plumbing,  sanitary  conditions  and  other  requirements 
in  building  and  housing  codes  for  the  preservation  of  health, 
safety  and  the  general  welfare  are  enforced  under  the  police 
power.  The  enforcement  of  these  police  power  regulations 
was  once  vigorously  contested,  but  their  validity  is  not  now 
questioned.  The  decisions  of  the  state  and  federal  courts  in 
many  cases  where  the  application  of  the  police  power  has 
been  involved,  and  in  cases  where  the  legality  of  zoning 
regulations  has  been  attacked,  seem  to  consider  conclusively 
that  a  comprehensive  zoning  ordinance,  enacted  under  power 
conferred  by  an  adequate  state  zoning  enabling  act,  will  be 
sustained,  provided  the  regulations  and  the  districts  created 
are  reasonable  and  not  arbitrary  or  confiscatory. — From  “The 
Providence  Zone  Plan”  by  Robert  Whitten,  Consultant  to  the 
Joint  Standing  Committee  on  Ordinances,  Providence,  R.  I. 


WHY  ZONING  PAYS 

Zoning  sells  a  town.  An  unzoned  town  is  like  a  dead 
stock  of  goods  on  the  shelves. 

Zoning  is  a  flexible  harness  in  which  city  expansion  works; 
it  may  be  adjusted  in  case  it  galls  or  frets  at  any  point. 

Zoning  will  flatten  out  the  human  pyramid,  which  con¬ 
gestion  has  created  in  a  crowded  portion  of  the  city. 

Zoning  substitutes  method  for  chance,  symmetry  for  con¬ 
fusion,  progression  for  patchwork,  and  order  for  chaos  in  city 
development. 

Zoning  affords  for  the  poor  man  such  security  from  nui¬ 
sances  and  invasions  as  the  rich  may  provide  at  great  ex¬ 
pense. — Charles  B.  Ball  in  the  Chicago  City  Club  Bulletin. 

ENORMOUS  LOSS  WITHOUT  ZONING 

The  uncertainty  as  to  the  ultimate  character  of  different 
districts  in  a  city  where  no  restrictions  exist  has  deterred 
many  property  holders  from  improving  their  lands.  A  par¬ 
ticular  kind  of  building  which  would  now  seem  appropriate 
may  in  the  near  future  become  obsolete  and  result  in  great 
financial  loss  to  the  investor.  Any  restrictions  which  will 
tend  to  forecast  and  preserve  the  character  of  the  various 
districts  within  a  city,  for  a  reasonable  number  of  years,  will 
consequently  stabilize  land  values  and  encourage  buildings 
of  similar  character  in  like  districts.  Any  growing  city  failing 
to  regulate  and  control  its  building  development  must  inevit¬ 
ably  suffer  enormous  social  and  financial  loss  through  the 
changing  conditions  in  different  districts  and  the  instability 
of  property  values.— Harland  Bartholomew,  City  Planner, 
in  “The  City  Plan  of  Hamilton,  Ohio.” 


ZONING  SAVES  CHICAGO  BILLION  DOLLARS 

That  a  saving  of  approximately  $1,000,000,000  in  pro¬ 
perty  values  will  be  made  within  the  next  generation  as  a 
result  of  the  zoning  plan  in  Chicago  was  estimated  by  Charles 
Bostrum,  chairman  of  the  Chicago  Zoning  Commission,  at  a 
meeting  of  the  American  Civic  Association  in  that  city,  says 
the  Toledo  “City  Journal”.  Edward  H.  Bennett,  director  of 
zoning  work  in  Chicago,  explained  how  the  saving  will  be 
made. 

“What  we  are  trying  to  do  is  to  create  conditions  favorable 
to  industrial  enterprise,  to  the  protection  of  business  and  the 
improvement  of  working  conditions,”  he  said.  “This  neces¬ 
sarily  takes  time.  But  it  is  well  worth  it.  Zoning,  we  believe, 
will  save  approximately  one  billion  dollars  by  preventing  pro¬ 
perty  depreciation  and  in  increasing  property  values  within  a 
thirty-year  period,  including  ten  years  back  and  twenty  years 
ahead.” 

BUILDING  THE  FUTURE  CITY 

Zoning  is  a  first  essential  ta<  the  securing  of  a  measure  of 
orderliness  in  the  building  of  the  city.  The  common  sense 
of  the  average  citizen  leads  to  a  degree  of  order  in  the  home, 
the  store  and  the  factory  that  is  all  but  lacking  in  the  life 
and  work  of  the  community  as  a  whole.  For  want  of  a  well- 
considered  plan  of  building  development  each  man  builds 
without  reference  to  his  neighbor.  The  result  is  chaotic. 
Haphazard  growth  is  inefficient,  wasteful  and  ugly.  Why  not 
use  the  same  forethought  and  care  in  the  building  of  our 
community  home  that  each  sane  man  uses  in  the  building  of 
his  individual  home  or  factory?  Zoning  is  the  direction  of 
building  development  along  orderly  and  well-considered  lines 
of  city  growth.  On  the  economic  side,  zoning  means  in¬ 
creased  industrial  efficiency  and  the  prevention  of  enormous 
waste.  On  the  human  side,  zoning  means  better  homes  and 
an  increase  of  health,  comfort  and  happiness  for  all  the 
people. — Robert  Whitten,  Zoning  Expert,  in  “The  Providence 
Zone  Plan.” 


PURPOSE  OF  ZONING 

Zoning  expresses  the  idea  of  orderliness  in  community  de¬ 
velopment.  Just  as  we  have  a  place  for  everything  in  a 
well-ordered  home,  so  we  should  have  a  place  for  everything 
in  a  well-regulated  town.  What  would  we  think  of  a  house¬ 
wife  who  insisted  on  keeping  her  gas.  range  in  the  parlor  and 
her  piano  in  the  kitchen?  Yet  anomalies  like  these  have 
become  commonplace  in  our  community  housekeeping.  In 
what  city  can’t  we  find  gas  tanks  next  to  parks,  garages  next 
to  schools,  boiler  shops  next  to  hospitals,  stables  next  to 
churches,  or  funeral  establishments  next  to  dwelling  houses? 
What  would  be  considered  insanity  if  practiced  in  the  ordinary 
house  is  excused  as  an  exercise  of  individual  liberty  when 
practiced  in  the  city  at  large.  And  yet  misplaced  buildings 
are  to  be  condemned  much  more  than  out-of-place  pieces  of 
furniture. 

The  whole  purpose  of  zoning  is  to  encourage  thet  erection 
of  the  right  building  in  the  right  place.  It  protects  the  man 
who  develops  his  property  along  proper  lines  against  the  man 
who  develops  along  improper  lines.  Rightly  understood,  zon¬ 
ing  means  the  substitution  of  an  economic,  scientific,  efficient 
community  program  of  city  building  for  wasteful,  inefficient 
haphazard  growth. — From  Report  of  Executive  Committee, 
Commission  on  Building  Districts  and  Restrictions,  Newark, 
New  Jersey. 

LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL 

Elkhart,  Indiana,  December  7,  1921. 

W.  E.  WIDER,  Esq.,  President  City  Council  of  Elkhart, 

Elkhart,  Indiana. 

Dear  Sir: — The  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Elkhart  Chamber  of  Com¬ 
merce  unanimously  endorsed  the  following  action  at  its  meeting  yesterday: 

RESOLVED,  That  the  Elkhart  Chamber  of  Commerce  hereby  agrees 
to  transmit  to  the  City  of  Elkhart  all  maps  and  data  pertaining  to  the  City 
Plan  of  Elkhart  submitted  as  preliminary  services  by  Dr.  John  Nolen,  of 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  with  all  professional  fees  of  Dr.  Nolen  in  connection 
with  the  complete  plan  to  the  extent  of  Six  Thousand  Dollars  paid  by  said 
Elkhart  Chamber  of  Commerce  and  the  subscribers  to  the  special  City  Plan 
Fund  as  originally  agreed; 

PROVIDED,  That  the  City  Council  of  Elkhart  will  immediately  enact 
an  ordinance  creating  a  City  Plan  Commission  of  Elkhart  and  will  at  once 
appoint  the  members  of  said  Commission,  as  provided  by  an  Act  of  the 
last  Indiana  General  Assembly;  which  Commission  shall  proceed  with  Dr. 
Nolen  in  working  out  the  final  and  complete  City  Plan  of  Elkhart  as  pro 
posed  by  the  agreement  between  the  Elkhart  Chamber  of  Commerce  and 
Dr.  Nolen.  Very  respectfully  submitted, 

W.  L.  SHAFER,  Secretary. 

INDEX 


Billboards  and  Views  They  Hide  (illustrations)  . 16 

Bridges  (illustrations)  .  7 

City  Plan  Commission  .  Title  Page 

City  Planning,  Other  Expert  Opinions  on  . 17 

Civic  Center  and  Central  Open  Space  (illustrated) . 12 

Elkhart  Chamber  of  Commerce  Committee  on  City  Plan . Title  Page 

Letter  of  Transmittal  . 24 

Existing  Conditions  Map  .  Title  Page 

General  City  Plan  Map  .  Facing  Title  Page 

Grade  Crossing  Elimination  (illustrated) . 10  II 

New  Developments  Map  .  Facing  Page  24 

Parks  and  Parkways,  4-10;  Park  System  Map  .  9 

Parks,  Existing  and  Proposed  .  4 

Platting  .  4 

River  Bank  Development  (illustrated)  . 14  15 

School  Sites  Recommended,  New,  10;  Additions  .  5 

Street  Extensions  Proposed  (illustrations)  .  6 

Street  Sections,  Typical  (illustrated)  . 13 

Street  Widening  Recommended,  4;  Illustrated  . 13 

Subscribers  to  City  Plan  Fund  . 14 

Thoroughfares,  Main,  3 ;  Map  .  5 

Zoning  Supplement  .  18-24 

Constitutionality  of  Zoning  . 18  22  23 

Nolen  on  Zoning  . 18 

Expressions  by  Other  Experts  . 21-24 

Nolen  Zone  Map  . 20 


24 


DESIGNED  AND  COMPILED  BY  TOM  H.  KEENE  AND  W.  L  SHAFER 
MAPS  AND  ENGRAVINGS  BY  SOUTH  BEND  ENGRAVING  COMPANY 
PRINTED  IN  ELKHART  BY  JAMES  A.  BELL  COMPANY 


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Which  Shall  Elkhart  Be? 

HE  DEAD  TOWN  sees  only  Its 
Past.”  It  harps  upon  back-yonder 
days;  builds  monuments;  lolls  along 
leisurely;  is  satisfied  with  decrepit  public 
works;  let's  George  do  it;  stagnates;  loses 
its  ambitious  young  folks  and  live  citizens, 
who  go  where  Opportunity  does  not  knock 
vainly  in  her  occasional  visits. 

“THE  LIVE  TOWN  looks  to  The  Future.” 
Revering  past  heroes  and  achievements  in 
suitable  memorial  form,  benefiting  by  ex¬ 
periences,  it  has  vision;  seeks  civic,  commer¬ 
cial  and  social  progress  for  its  citizenry; 
inspires  civic  loyalty  and  co-operation;  pro¬ 
vides  every  possible  public  convenience  for 
work  and  play  and  worship;  keeps  its  own 
young  people  and  attracts  the  best  man¬ 
hood  and  womanhood  from  the  wide  world; 
looks  ahead  and  gets  ahead— tor  Opportun¬ 
ity  lives  right  there. 

Which  shall  Our  Town  be,  Mr.  Elkhartan? 
“It’s  up  to  YOU.” 


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